Kiké Hernández hits go-ahead homer as Dodgers beat Giants
Fredo Cervantes
Host · Writer
SAN FRANCISCO — The Dodgers have spent much of this season finding ways to win games they probably had no business losing.
On Saturday at Oracle Park, they found another one.
Kiké Hernández stepped to the plate in the ninth inning with the Dodgers and Giants tied at 3-3, and with one swing, turned what had been a grinding night into another Dodgers victory.
Kike go-ahead HR in the 9th to give #dodgers the lead! pic.twitter.com/VuwsOULgUJ
— The Sporting Tribune (@SportingTrib) September 26, 2026
Hernández crushed a cutter left over the heart of the plate and sent it soaring 429 feet into the skyt, giving the Dodgers a 4-3 lead and their 99th win of the regular season.
It was the kind of moment that has defined the Dodgers' late-season run.
The Dodgers had gone hitless over the last four innings before Hernández's homer. Earlier in the game, Hernández had struck out with the bases loaded, leaving an opportunity on the table. But when the Giants made a mistake in the ninth, Hernández made them pay.
The blast was his answer.
Tanner Scott then closed the door in the bottom half for his 25th save, securing the Dodgers' 17th victory in their last 22 games and moving them to 99-62. One more win gives them 100.
Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images
Sep 26, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Tanner Scott (66) delivers a pitch against the San Francisco Giants in the ninth inning at Oracle Park.
They'll have a chance to get it Sunday in the regular-season finale.
The Dodgers' offense got started early Saturday.
Mookie Betts opened the scoring with his 23rd home run of the season, putting the Dodgers ahead 1-0 in the third inning. Betts finished 1-for-5, with his lone hit coming on the long ball.
Mookie to the seats! pic.twitter.com/ODaan7L8V6
— SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) September 26, 2026
The Giants answered, but the Dodgers quickly regained the lead.
Miguel Rojas delivered an RBI single in the fourth inning to break the tie and put the Dodgers ahead 2-1. Tommy Edman followed with an RBI single.
Then the offense went quiet. For 12 consecutive Dodgers batters, nobody could find a hit. That made Hernández's ninth-inning swing all the more significant.
The Dodgers needed somebody to break through, and Hernández did what he has done throughout his career: he punished a mistake when the moment demanded it.
Blake Snell made his final regular-season start as he continues to prepare for the postseason. The left-hander worked four innings, allowing five hits and one earned run while walking nobody and striking out three.
He threw 77 pitches, 50 for strikes, and finished the regular season with a 1.90 ERA across nine starts.
Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images
Sep 26, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell (7) delivers a pitch against the San Francisco Giants in the first inning at Oracle Park.
The pitch count wasn't particularly efficient, Snell threw just 39% of his pitches in the strike zone, but the bigger priority was making sure he came out of his final tune-up feeling healthy and ready for October.
Shohei Ohtani went 1-for-5, with an infield single in the fifth inning. Since returning from the injured list, Ohtani is 4-for-18 with eight strikeouts.
He is expected to be back in the lineup Sunday as he continues ramping up for the postseason.
The Dodgers did, however, suffer another potentially significant injury with October approaching.
Blake Treinen's shoulder flared up while he was warming in the bullpen, Dave Roberts said. Treinen is scheduled to undergo imaging, but Roberts said the expectation is that his season is likely over.
That news cast another shadow over an otherwise important victory.
Still, the Dodgers walked out of Oracle Park with what they came for. A win.
Their 99th of the season. And because Hernández came through when the Dodgers needed him most, they are now one victory away from reaching triple digits.
